Former Manchester United goalkeeping coach Frans Hoek has lifted the lid on a crisis meeting with David De Gea over his failed move to Real Madrid.

De Gea looked set to leave United for the Bernabeu in 2015 only for a faulty fax machine to scupper the deal.

Former boss Louis van Gaal opted to leave De Gea out of United's first few matches of the season as the saga unfolded.

And Hoek held a meeting with the Spanish stopper to discuss his future.

"I had an open discussion with David, who was always honest and realistic, and the conclusion was that it was better to leave him out until the moment his situation was clear because the situation was influencing David at that moment," the Dutchman told the Manchester Evening News.

Hoek with De Gea and Romero (Image: John Peters)

The United coach speaks to his players (Image: Getty)

"David has always been open in the communication about that possible move. We discussed that openly and the fact it had failed to happen. I felt he knew exactly what was going on and switched immediately again to his current situation."

Had it not been for that faulty fax machine on deadline day, de Gea would not have gone on to become, arguably, the greatest goalkeeper in United's history.

That was one of many key moments in the Spaniard's time at United - three-and-a-half years after that remarkable stop from Juan Mata's free-kick in the dying moments of a 3-3 draw with Chelsea at Stamford Bridge.

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"He wouldn't get flustered too often. Only once in my time there when things weren't going quite to plan in training he walked off and threw his gloves over the fence. I just said to him, 'We're not quite finished yet!'"

Now firmly established as a club great, what next for de Gea?

Few are better placed to comment than his predecessor, van der Sar, who won 10 trophies in a glorious six year-spell at Old Trafford.

"The next step in his career is to organise his defence, make sure he is less busy than he is at the moment. That's part of playing, gaining confidence and making sure you can work with the defenders and protect the goal," he said.